I keep hearing from people in my life that spirituality is an essential part of living a meaningful existence. I hear the phrase “let go and let God” and “everything happens for a reason” used a lot as advice and comfort. However, I’m an atheist and a materialist. I don’t know how I could even be spiritual with those beliefs. At the same time, my life is not fulfilling despite the fact that I am not struggling financially. Moreover, I feel paralyzed when I try to get off my privileged ass and do even the bare minimum for socialist organizing because I realize that it goes directly against my labor aristocratic class interests. I feel like knowing that sticking my neck out and contributing to the real movement to change the present state of things is the morally correct thing to do isn’t enough to drive me.
In short, what is spirituality? Is it compatible with materialism? If so, how? And if spirituality is the wrong tree to bark up, how can I drive myself to do what is to be done?
Sadly the weed thing’s not a good option for me considering I’m trying to put it down after being a multiple times a day toker where I reached a point I couldn’t even feel it anymore. I will have to examine my beliefs though. I have a habit of being self-critical in a way that is self-flagellating instead of constructive. I think an inability to feel positive feelings has also warped my worldview into a self-defeating one even when I know intellectually I can change.